Stephen Fulton: record, next fight and profile →
Naoya Inoue likes the feeling of being the challenger, at least to a point. It’s something he hasn’t experienced in more than five years, when he entered the ring for his bantamweight debut versus then-secondary WBA titlist Jamie McDonnell. Inoue needed just 112 seconds to make his mark on a division he
Stephen Fulton has fully embraced his newfound road warrior role. The unified WBC/WBO junior featherweight titlist from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania has felt at home the moment he arrived in Japan on July 11. He will be in the country for two full weeks by the opening bell sounds for his blockbuster showdown versus former three-division champ Naoya Inoue on July 25 at Ariake Arena in Tokyo.
On most occasions, when a fighter decides that a change in divisional scenery is needed, they often opt for a warm-up fight. Whether they're moving up or down in weight, it isn’t always sagacious to simply make a beeline for the division’s top dog. Naoya Inoue, however, wasn’t interested in going the traditional route.
Fulton, Inoue Final Press Conference Photos Gallery - Three-division world champion Naoya “Monster” Inoue (24-0, 21 KOs) will embark on his quest to conquer a fourth weight class as he challenges WBC/WBO junior featherweight world champion Stephen Fulton (21-0, 8 KOs) this Tuesday, July 25 at Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan (photos by Naoki Fukada)
The team surrounding Stephen Fulton has raised a hand wrap scandal which they would like resolved prior to fight night. Wahid Rahim, Fulton’s head trainer, took a drastic turn during Saturday’s press conference ahead of the upcoming showdown versus Naoya Inoue. The threat of walking away from Tuesday’s WBC/WBO junior featherweight title fight was put on the table, over concerns that Yokohama’s Inoue (24-0, 21KOs) wraps his hands in a fashion that is considered ‘stacking’ in most commissions around the world.
Stephen Fulton could’ve battled Brandon Figueroa in a rematch that boxing fans would’ve wanted to see. Their fan-friendly, closely contested 12-round, 122-pound championship match was a “Fight of the Year” candidate in November 2021 at Park MGM’s Dolby Live in Las Vegas. Fulton won a majority decision, but Figueroa feels he deserved the victory that night and Fulton was willing to fight his rival again.
The super bantamweight division might be packed to the brim with talent but no one has established themselves as the man to beat quite like Stephen Fulton.
Terence Crawford favors Stephen Fulton to win the biggest fight that’ll take place outside of the United States next week. The unbeaten WBO welterweight champion respects Naoya Inoue, but Crawford considers Fulton’s size, strength and skills as advantages that’ll help him upset the Japanese superstar in their 12-round fight for Fulton’s WBC and WBO 122-pound championships. Inoue (24-0, 21 KOs) will face Fulton (21-0, 8 KOs) in a 12-round main event Tuesday night at Ariake Arena in Tokyo.
Super bantamweight contender Ra’eese Aleem (20-1, 12 KOs) has broken his silence since suffering his first defeat as a professional, a hard-fought split decision loss to Sam Goodman (15-0, 7 KOs), which took place in Goodman’s homeland of Australia last month.
The fired-up Naoya Inoue knows that it won’t be easy to become a four-division world champion. The former undisputed 118-pound king vacated all four of his belts and is moving up to 122 pounds in order to challenge unified super bantamweight champion Stephen Fulton on July 29 in Japan.